KARACHI: As Pakistan’s ruling party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), moves to form a Joint Parliamentary Commission to investigate country’s economic crisis, experts are calling it an “inappropriate and diversionary tactic,” suggesting the government produce a white paper on the status of economy.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has submitted a resolution in the National Assembly to form a joint commission to probe causes of the present economic crisis and identify those responsible for it, local media reported.
“I have submitted a resolution in the National Assembly for the constitution of a parliamentary commission to point out that those responsible in the previous governments have raised the country’s foreign debts from Rs 6,000 billion ($45 billion) to Rs 30,000 billion during the past 10 years,” Chaudhry was quoted as saying.
However, experts rejected the idea, reasoning that no person can be singled out because of the collective nature of government. “It is not an act of any individual; rather it is the action of a collective body that is the cabinet. You cannot single out a person as it is inappropriate,” Dr. Hafeez Pasha, former finance minister, told Arab News.
Pasha added: “The government can issue a white paper on the status of the economy, citing the policies which caused the economic trouble, but the idea of forming a commission seems bizarre. It is a kind of diversionary tactic to divert the attention of the people from the difficult decision being taken.”
The country’s democratic transition started in 2008 when Pakistan People’s Party won the elections and formed a government after about eight years of dictator General Musharraf’s rule.
“When we took charge the economy was wobbling but we did not blame anyone; instead we corrected everything,”, Saleem Mandviwalla, deputy chairman of the Senate and former finance minister, told Arab News.
“If they want to justify their actions through this resolution it would be difficult for it to be passed. In my opinion, by introducing such a resolution their actions will not be justified.”
He asked the PTI leadership to manage the situation as they are in power. “If you mishandled the situation, saying that the situation is worse because the previous governments made the things worse then Musharraf’s era must also be probed. Why it is not being taken (for investigation)?” Mandviwalla questioned.
He said that when the PPP government left office Pakistan’s currency was stable with only PKR 17-18 devaluation, which is normal, and the country’s stock market was at 20,000 points level with rising trend.
When the outgoing Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) government left office, the country had achieved 5.8 percent growth in the last fiscal year FY2017-18, highest in the past 13 years, for which the PML-N takes credit.
“We did everything in order in every sector. Debts in our tenure increased only 80 percent, which soared by 150 percent during the previous regime. Our government eliminated terrorism, started CPEC, produced 12000MW electricity,” Senator Mushahid Ullah Khan told Arab News.
“If they want to form a commission, let them do it,” he said. “They will themselves be held responsible about what they did in 56 days of their government being in office.”
As many believe that the government will not be in a position to single out “a culprit for the economic crisis” due to the collective nature of government ruled by federal cabinet, political analysts have called for legislation to determine responsibility. “If the federal cabinet makes any decision and the outcome is not what was desired then it cannot be declared a crime,” Dr. Rasul Bakhsh Rais, senior political analyst, told Arab News.
“Legal clarification will be required to determine that whether the whole cabinet is responsible or the prime minister, because for any crime responsibility will be individual rather than collective. Courts will decide where the law is silent on the issue.”
The government aims to identify the people responsible for the prevalent economic crisis. The commission will present relevant recommendations to the government, which will then decide on appropriate action.
